BRAMPTON City Councillor Gurpreet Dhillon has welcomed the Province of Ontario’s new ban on the predatory door-to-door sales of heating, air, and water services, which came into effect on March 1.

In May of 2016, Dhillon had successfully introduced a motion in Council urging the Province to ban door-to-door sales to ensure that Brampton residents were protected from aggressive and misleading sales tactics used on vulnerable and unknowing residents, and being locked into expensive long-term contracts.

“Protecting our taxpayers has always been a priority of mine,” said Dhillon. “I heard loud and clear from my constituents that safe guards needed to be put in place to protect consumers, and I applaud the Province for taking action and listening to Council.

“Too many Bramptonians have been tricked into long term contracts by these dishonest sales agents, costing their families thousands of dollars per year.”The new law offers a 10-day cooling-off period for customers to cancel contracts they signed in their home without penalty. If a consumer signs a contract after being approached by a company through door-to-door sales, the agreement will be automatically considered void and the buyer can keep the goods or services they were sold without obligation.

Furthermore, companies who visit homes for repairs will be banned from selling new contracts while on maintenance calls, but allows them to hand out promotional materials. Company staff can only discuss new contracts on a visit if the customer provides prior approval when arranging the house call.

Individuals who violate the law will risk a fine of up to $50,000 or imprisonment for up to two years, less a day, or both. Corporations will face a fine of up to $250,000.